Jo Ann Robinson in Civil Rights Movement: Desegregation

Jo Ann Robinson (1912 - 1992) was an English professor at an all-black college who, as part of the Women's Political Council (WPC), helped plan and launch the Montgomery bus boycott.

During the Christmas holiday in 1949, Jo Ann Robinson was expelled from a bus for violating segregation laws. The incident helped inspire her and the WPC to plan a one-day citywide bus boycott in December 1955. From this strike, the Montgomery Bus Boycott would be born.